


Sweet Dreams (are made of these)

by Darkangel4066



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Dark Fairy Tale Elements, Demon Kylo Ren, Demons, Dreams and Nightmares, Evil Snoke, F/M, Force Visions, HEA, Kylo Ren Needs a Hug, Magic, Nothing That's Not in the Movie, Past Lives, Redeemed Ben Solo, Rey Needs A Hug, Some Fluff, Think Grimm's Fairy Tales, Tolkien References, Torture, Visions, brave Rey, it's very brief, mention of terminal illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:55:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26944780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkangel4066/pseuds/Darkangel4066
Summary: Every night, Kylo Ren watches Rey sleep.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27
Collections: Reylo Readers & Writers - The Spooktacular Collection





	Sweet Dreams (are made of these)

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to thank [LadyRhi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyRhi/pseuds/LadyRhi) for beta-ing this work. 
> 
> This work is based on a prompt for the Reylo Readers and Writers Spooktacular collection. Demons. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Every night, Kylo Ren watched Rey sleep.

It was never a dreamless sleep. He made sure of that, his demonic powers reaching out for her slumbering mind each time her warm hazel eyes closed. Instead, it was a cacophony of images meant to unsettle her — meant to make her awaken. 

It wasn’t that he meant to frighten her. No, Kylo was fascinated by and drawn to her in a way he didn’t understand. He simply didn’t know how to approach her any other way. 

As he watched over her on this night, Rey Johnson slept on, tossing and turning in her bed. Her hair spread over the pillow in a fan of silk that shone in the moonlight. It looked black in the darkness, but he knew it to be closer to chestnut in color. She was an interesting creature and he refused to leave her alone.

Growing impatient, Kylo sent her a particularly disturbing image, and Rey started awake, gasping in terror and reaching for the light. Her eyes roved frantically around the room as she turned on the small bedside lamp, pressing a hand over her heart. 

Observing her as she glanced nervously around the room, Kylo noticed her delicate hands shaking a little. Rey quickly regained her composure, however, and it won a measure of admiration from him.

“Who’s there?” she called softly in a steady voice. 

Kylo jumped in surprise. The girl was staring straight into the corner in which he was crouching. 

“Come out, demon,” Rey commanded, sounding tired. 

Kylo snorted. If she sounded tired, it’s probably because she was. He’d disturbed her sleep every night for the last month — every night since he’d first laid eyes on her. 

“I know you’re there. I can feel you.” She spoke softly, coaxing him. 

Materializing, he stepped cautiously out of the shadows. This was uncharted territory and he was wary of traps. For all he knew, she could banish him from her side, and for some reason, he couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her. 

Kylo Ren was not prepared for her reaction. 

*

Rey gasped when the figure of a man stepped out of the shadows. He was tall, with shoulder-length, inky black hair, and eyes the color of a tiger’s. His long, pale face and prominent nose lent him an aristocratic air. 

_ He’s quite attractive _ , she thought. The corners of his sinful-looking lips curved upward as if he’d heard.

Rey sat up more fully in bed, drawing her knees to her chest defensively. 

“I won’t hurt you,” Kylo said, seeking to allay her fear, voice raspy from disuse. 

“If you don’t want to hurt me, why do you send me these frightening dreams, demon?” she asked. 

Now, she was more curious than frightened of him. He looked harmless, after all. The only things that did not appear human about him were the  _ huge _ black-and-red feathered wings folded against his back.

Rey could tell that he didn’t trust her. It was rather ironic since, if anyone was in any kind of danger, it was  _ her _ . Still, he appeared uncomfortable with the thought of approaching her. 

“What’s your name?” she blurted as she stared into his shadowed eyes, lost. 

*

“Kylo Ren,” he immediately responded without thought. Cringing inside, he realized that he had just given her a great deal of power over him. 

Demons could be summoned or banished by invoking their names. He had just given her the information she needed to force him to leave her ... but the expected order never came. 

Instead, she smiled reassuringly. “That’s a nice name.” 

It wasn’t.  _ He _ wasn’t nice, but a warmth he didn’t understand spread from somewhere in his chest at her words. 

Running a hand through his hair, he debated moving closer to her. He wanted to touch her — to see if her skin was as soft as it looked. 

Feelings of...guilt, of all things, welled inside him. He realized he felt remorse for scaring her, for giving her those dreams. Well, he amended to himself, maybe he didn’t regret the dreams showing what he wanted to do with her. Maybe not those. 

To his further astonishment, Rey extended a hand, reaching for him. Compelled, he took a few steps in her direction before he realized what he was doing and stopped his forward momentum, wavering slightly as if drunk. 

Rey beckoned. “Come on. It’s all right.” 

Kylo marveled at her fearlessness. Anyone else would be panicking when faced with an  _ actual _ demon. But then, he hadn’t always  _ been _ a demon. 

Once, he had been a man. 

*

Rey could tell that he was thinking hard about something. Remaining silent, she watched while his eyes traversed the room, eventually landing on her. His dark gaze made her shiver. 

  
  
  


Kylo Ren took another step in her direction. And another. Until he was close enough to reach out and take her hand if he wanted. Then the demon glanced away. 

_ I feel so alone _ , he thought. 

“You’re not alone,” Rey said as if he’d spoken aloud. 

He met her gaze. “Neither are you,” he rasped sincerely. 

She stretched her hand toward him once more and he hesitantly reached out to her. Their fingers hovering within a few centimeters of each other for the briefest of instants, then he closed the minuscule distance. 

Their fingertips touched, and a shock like electricity jolted between them. Kylo slid his palm along hers to grip her wrist, caressing the delicate skin there. 

Rey broke eye contact first, trembling beneath his fingers. Her face was flushed and he knew. 

She felt it too. 

It was the strangest thing. Kylo felt, at that moment, like he’d known her for all eternity. Visions assailed him. 

_ A Grecian beauty, running through a field to him. A Medieval peasant girl, milking a cow and glaring up at him. A collected, Regency debutante in a delicate, empire-waisted party dress, dancing with him.  _

All of these visions had one thing in common: they were all of her...and him. They were in different times, different places, but all showed  _ them _ together. 

Let the past die, he’d been told but  _ she _ was his past and his  _ future _ . Visions of those past lives together shown to him now, in this life, rent his heart because he knew they could never be that way again. Not with him as he was.

The man who had cursed him — created him — had made sure that there could be no way out for him. 

Kylo despaired, but kept his hand, palm to palm with hers, where it belonged. 

*

Rey’s breath hitched in her chest as the visions assailed her, tears leaking down her cheeks. She’d found him, her soulmate, and he wasn’t even human. They could never be. 

It wasn’t right or fair. Life often wasn’t right or fair, however. 

“Where have you been all my life?” Her voice shattered the silence, quiet and longing. She’d meant to make friends with him, not to find out that he should have been hers. 

“Have you been... _ this _ ,” she gestured toward his wings, “for long?” 

“No…” he trailed off. “Just the last four years.” 

“You’re breaking my heart.” She drew a shaky breath. “Why didn’t you wait for me? Didn’t you know?” 

“N-no. I didn’t know you existed, but I know now,” he offered, trying to repair the damage a simple touch had done. 

“Now? When it’s too late?” Rey asked incredulously, lifting her chin to meet his gaze. 

“It’s not,” his voice deep and strong, desperate for her not to give up. “The spell can be broken,” he added soothingly. 

“How?” Rey wiped her tears away, hope lighting her eyes. She’d only just met the demon, and she wanted nothing more than to be with him for the rest of her life.

*

Kylo breathed deeply, thinking. He didn’t know for sure that the spell could be broken, but magic worked that way in fairy tales, so why not now? 

“We could speak to the man who cursed me? Ask him to lift the curse,” he suggested. 

“He would do that?” 

“Maybe not,” he said, shaking his head. There was no way Snoke would just give him back his old life. Even worse, if they confronted him, Kylo was certain that the warlock would just order him to do something terrible — like kill Rey. 

He couldn’t risk her like that, not now that he knew her for what she was, not now that he understood why he had been so drawn to her despite his being bound to the underworld with the others who were cursed.

There was no one else he had ever felt this deeply attached to so quickly. How could he love her so much when he’d just met her? He didn’t understand it. 

If he’d known she existed, he would have waited. He would have done everything in his power to find her. To be with her. 

“I want to try,” she said calmly, cutting through his reverie. 

Kylo glanced at her with hooded eyes, squeezing her wrist lightly. 

“I wouldn’t be able to promise you won’t be hurt,” he said, shaking his head. 

“I won’t,” she replied firmly, knowingly. “You won’t allow it.”

“You don’t know that. You don’t know  _ him _ .” He was resolute. There was no way she was going anywhere near Snoke. 

“So...you  _ like _ being a demon?” she asked, lifting her chin in defiance. 

“No...but he’s...not the best person,” he replied, thoughtfully. “I can’t appeal to his... _ better nature _ .”

“Oh,” Rey withdrew her hand, leaving him feeling bereft without her touch. She wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on her knees. She looked dejected. 

“But, he might be willing to make a trade. If...we could offer something he wants,” Kylo suggested. 

“Like what?” Rey glanced up at him. 

“Something that might provide him more power would work. But I don’t know what that would be. He’s already very powerful.” Kylo frowned. 

“Did he give you that name?” Rey questioned, changing the subject abruptly. She was frowning now, too. 

He paused with a nod, afraid to speak. 

“What was your name before he cursed you?” she coaxed, seeing his reluctance.

“Ben,” he rasped, suddenly desperate to hear his name — his  _ real  _ name — fall from her lips. “Ben Solo.” 

“Ben,” she whispered, almost too soft for him to hear. Her eyes lit up for an instant. “If I now know your true name, I have power over you too, right?” 

“Right,” Kylo said, resigned. He didn’t know where she was going with this, but he didn’t like it. 

“So maybe if you get two conflicting commands, you can choose who to listen to,” she suggested. 

“Two conflicting commands…” Kylo murmured thoughtfully, the corners of his mouth lifting. 

“It’s worth a shot,” she shrugged. 

“It won’t work,” he warned, unwilling to hope too much. 

“Still, we should go see him,” Rey insisted. 

Kylo’s frown seemed permanently etched on his face. 

“Ben Solo! You will take me to the man who cursed you,” Rey demanded of him. 

Kylo cringed at the command. Now he  _ had _ to take her to Snoke. He could not disobey a command. 

*

Kylo turned his back, allowing Rey to dress, and grumbling the entire time under his breath. This was mostly due to her command not to peek. 

After a few minutes, Rey tapped him on the shoulder. Acquiescing, since he had no other choice, he gathered her in his arms and carried her out into the night. 

“Hey! I can walk, you know!” she laughed. 

“Oh…right,” he responded, embarrassed. Color flooded his face causing his cheeks and ears to heat up until he knew they had to be bright pink. It wasn’t the best look for a terrifying demon.

But he didn’t put her down. 

“Ready?” he asked.

“Ready,” Rey replied resolutely. 

Kylo spread his shining red-and-black wings, coiled, and leapt into the air; the wind lifted him upward. 

To her credit, Rey didn’t make a sound of fear. Rather, she laughed in delight. 

Kylo smiled.  _ Does nothing frighten her? _

The city faded away, followed by the countryside, until they reached a shimmering barrier, a solitary mountain beyond. The air grew cold as they approached that dark peak. Kylo noticed that Rey’s lips were starting to turn blue, and that she was shivering despite the warmth radiating off of him. 

“We’re almost there,” he reassured her, wishing he could will her to be warm. With no other means at-hand, he could only hold her tighter, closer. 

He landed a few moments later at the foot of the mountain. 

“Jeeze,” Rey said through chattering teeth. “Who is this guy, Smaug?” 

Kylo rolled his eyes at her reference to  _ The Hobbit _ . “There’s no such thing as dragons,” he admonished, though he couldn’t resist a brief flare of mischief. “Also, you’re a nerd,” he said, grinning. 

“You must be too if you understood _ that _ ,” she retorted, crossing her arms over her chest, glaring. 

“Okay, okay,” he set her down and stepped away. “I’m sorry” 

“It’s all right,” she said. “I’m not  _ really _ mad.” 

“I know,” Kylo sighed. The banter had helped ease the tension for a moment, but now it returned in full force as they stood before their goal.He stared up apathetically at the entrance to Snoke’s mountain stronghold. He hated that he had to come here because, every time he did, he ended up in deeper trouble than when he arrived. 

His master’s power over him was absolute. After trying several times to resist Snoke’s commands, Kylo had given up. As much as it frustrated him, he could not break free of his master’s control. 

Glancing over at Rey, he briefly considered simply taking her and running. A clean getaway was the best thing for them. He could take her somewhere safe and watch her from a distance - hide her away in his mind where Snoke would never find her. 

Instead, he steeled himself for what was to come. She would never allow him to run, even if it would save them  _ both _ a lot of pain. Kylo was half-convinced that he was going to lose Rey this night. Either he would accidentally kill her or Snoke would do something equally heinous. 

Sighing again, Kylo glanced at Rey out of the corner of his eye, trying to memorize her beautiful, determined face. 

“Well, are we going in? Come on, let’s get this over with,” she started forward purposefully, heading straight toward her potential demise. 

“I hope your plan works because if it doesn’t, you’ll either be cursed too or dead,” Kylo muttered. 

The door swung open at their approach, allowing them to enter without any special effort. It seemed they were expected, and Kylo wasn’t surprised. 

_ Snoke always seems to know when I have arrived, _ he thought, a frisson of disquiet running along the back of his neck. 

The antechamber echoed with a burst of low, mocking laughter — a horrible, rasping sound that always sent chills down Kylo’s spine. He was able to contain his reaction but Rey shuddered at it. She balked a little before gritting her teeth and continuing toward the door to the audience hall. 

Placing his hand on her back to reassure her, he hoped to remind her that he was there, that she wasn’t alone in this. Then Kylo brushed the fingertips of his other hand along the seam of the double doors to the audience hall and they opened easily for him. 

Darkness filled the room. It was a trick that his master often used to frighten those who dared approach him. 

Kylo had once heard that his master served another, greater power, though he had never seen the person who wielded it. It was, therefore, difficult to believe such a power existed. 

“Master, I have brought you someone who wishes to ask a boon of you,” Kylo declared confidently, taking care to clear his mind. 

“Yes, I know of this  _ favor _ ,” Snoke sneered. “This girl would have me set you free.” 

“Yes, master,” Kylo knelt, fighting to hide how his master’s apparent knowledge of what they wanted unnerved him. 

Rey seemed content to watch attentively. 

“What can we do to break your spell?” she demanded. 

That horrible, rasping sound filled the hall once more. “Stupid girl, you amuse me.” 

“Is that good?” she whispered as an aside to Kylo. 

“Not if you want to live,” he mumbled, shoulders tense. 

“Kylo Ren, you would sacrifice immortality for a girl you just met?” His master mocked, turning to look down upon the cursed creature of his own making. 

Kylo held perfectly still, though he cringed inwardly. He’d never minded being mortal. That wasn’t the reason he had come to Snoke in the first place. 

Snoke had promised to grant that which Ben Solo had fallen at the powerful warlock’s feet to beg for - promised to save his father. That vow had been as empty as Ben’s heart had been left in the aftermath, however. 

Han Solo had been saved from an accident that should have taken his life, but it had proved to be more a torment than a mercy. The old man was still dying, regardless of his son’s bargain, of some wasting illness - and Kylo was trapped for all eternity by Snoke’s trickery. Or at least until his master decided to dispense with him, anyway. 

“Kylo, you will remain where you are while I show this _little_ _girl_ that no one takes what is mine,” Snoke commanded. 

Kylo stiffened but said nothing, glancing up to look at Snoke’s face. He waited. 

*

Rey gazed defiantly up at Snoke, lifting her chin; she dared him to hurt her. 

_ I’ll be ok,  _ she told herself, taking strength from the man kneeling at her side, curse or no.

Snoke was an unfortunate, twisted creature, in truth. She almost pitied him for whatever had caused him to be so bitter and cold — to hate with such vicious relish. 

No, Rey didn’t fear him. 

Suddenly, the warlock seized her with his magic and pain ripped through her, causing her to fall to her knees. It felt as though thousands of knives were stabbing her at once. 

_ Kylo, do something! Move _ ! 

*

Kylo stared at the stone floor as Snoke tortured his soulmate. A deep sense of conviction filled him. He had been compelled to obey, but his mind rebelled at the sound of her cries. 

Calmly, he raised his eyes from the floor once more. Using his own power, gifted to him ironically by Snoke, he slowly grasped a spear from the wall and turned it with his mind. 

He kept his eyes fixed intently on his master without lifting his head. This was not technically disobedience, since Snoke had not been very specific with his command. It was a deadly mistake — a  _ rookie _ mistake for him to make around any demon. 

_ Especially me! _

Clenching his fists at his sides, he plunged the spear straight through Snoke’s hunched form. 

His master cried out at Kylo’s betrayal, noticing far too late that his minion was no longer completely under his control. 

Death came far more swiftly than Snoke deserved. 

*

Rey watched, horrified as Snoke fell ... and Kylo lost any chance of becoming human again. 

“What did you do?” she asked, hopelessness filling her heart. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think,” Kylo said, already feeling the cost of what he’d done weighing on the remains of his tattered soul. 

Logically, Rey knew that he had only wanted to save her but, still. Coming here had been a wasted effort. They were no better off than when they’d started. 

“I’m not feeling so well,” Kylo wrapped his arms around his middle with an abruptness that startled her. 

“What’s wrong?” Rey’s concern was palpable, quickly turning to horror as she watched his teeth clench in agony. 

“I’m being torn apart,” he gasped, meeting her eyes, and physically, it might have been true. He looked stretched, thin, and pale. 

Rey pushed herself off the floor and started to hurry over to him as he dropped to his knees, wings outstretched. They shuddered, the crimson and sable of his plumage growing dull, sapped of its dark vibrancy. 

The magic wasn’t showy or grand. It was there and it was not. 

She blinked and suddenly  _ everything _ was different — the spell over Kylo had been broken. 

His wings were gone, and he was looking at her with wild eyes …  _ human  _ eyes. 

“Ben?” she whispered. 

“Yes, sweetheart,” he said, grinning at her uncertainly. 

Rey darted over, stopping short of leaping at him, and reached out to touch his hand. 

He closed the distance, grasping her fingers in his, and lifting them to his lips. 

“Let’s go home, Rey?” he suggested, wanting nothing more than to leave this realm of shadows behind. 

“Yes,” Rey croaked through happy tears, clutching his hand. “Let’s.” 

She couldn’t wait to get to know Ben Solo properly. 


End file.
